Land and go
Airport transfer
Private, 30 minutes
- From$20
- DriverPortuguese
- Reviews28
Find a stop on the map
Amazon rainforest tour from Rio de Janeiro: how to get to Manaus
Full-day Amazon River tour from Manaus
★ 4.2 · Rated by 431 guests
See all 48 stops
The Amazon around Manaus, pin by pin
Choose a route, then tap a marker or stop for a note and Google Maps.
The capital and largest city of Amazonas, where the Solimões and the Negro form the Amazon.
Google MapsPeru's departure point for river journeys into the rainforest.
Google MapsA river town on the upper Solimões, read as a gauge station by the Geological Survey of Brazil.
Google MapsA river port downstream of Manaus; a ferry of 36 hours links the two cities.
Google MapsThe Amazon reaches the Atlantic in Brazil; a local boat trip of 5 days runs from Manaus to Belem.
Google MapsA gauge town on the Madeira river, in Rondônia.
Google Maps
Manaus airport lies north of the center, in the Tarumã district.
Google MapsOpened on 31 December 1896; the dome carries 36,000 ceramic scales in the colors of the flag.
Google MapsThe river port of Manaus; the Negro level is read here, and gauge records are kept at the port.
Google MapsThe city beach on the Rio Negro, busiest on weekends.
Google Maps
The capital and largest city of Amazonas, where the Solimões and the Negro form the Amazon.
Google MapsWhere the Negro and the Solimões run side by side within one channel for several kilometers.
Google MapsThe Janauari area, on the lake that the site tour reaches by boat for the Meeting of the Waters and the water lilies.
Google MapsA sustainable development reserve just 25 minutes by river from Manaus.
Google MapsA river archipelago of more than 400 islands in the Rio Negro.
Google MapsThe town on the Anavilhanas side of the Negro, upriver from Manaus.
Google MapsA waterfall day trip of 12 hours from Manaus.
Google Maps
Where the Negro and the Solimões run side by side within one channel for several kilometers.
Google MapsThe site of the Encontro das Águas park, designed by Oscar Niemeyer, in the Colônia Antônio Aleixo district; works were under way.
Google MapsThe Rio Negro Bridge crosses the Negro at Manaus, not the Amazon itself.
Google MapsThe river port of Manaus; the Negro level is read here, and gauge records are kept at the port.
Google MapsThe Janauari area, on the lake that the site tour reaches by boat for the Meeting of the Waters and the water lilies.
Google MapsThe city beach on the Rio Negro, busiest on weekends.
Google MapsA riverside viewpoint on Avenida Sete de Setembro in the center.
Google Maps
A river town on the upper Solimões, read as a gauge station by the Geological Survey of Brazil.
Google MapsA Solimões gauge town west of Manaus.
Google MapsThe capital and largest city of Amazonas, where the Solimões and the Negro form the Amazon.
Google MapsA gauge station on the Amazon itself, below the meeting.
Google MapsA second gauge station on the Amazon, farther downstream.
Google MapsA gauge station on the Purus, a tributary that joins the Solimões.
Google MapsA gauge town on the Madeira river, in Rondônia.
Google MapsA gauge station on the Madeira in Amazonas.
Google MapsThe Rio Branco gauge town in Roraima; the Branco is the Negro's largest tributary.
Google MapsA second Rio Branco gauge town in Roraima.
Google MapsA river port downstream of Manaus; a ferry of 36 hours links the two cities.
Google Maps
Opened on 31 December 1896; the dome carries 36,000 ceramic scales in the colors of the flag.
Google MapsThe church on Largo São Sebastião, beside the opera house, with the famous wave-pattern paving square around it.
Google MapsOpened in 1883 on the bank of the Rio Negro, with a free entrance.
Google MapsThe city museum opened in 2018 and has eight rooms; entry is free by appointment.
Google MapsA provincial residence from 1875 that now holds five museums.
Google MapsThe Rio Negro palace is an optional stop on the private city tour in the listing.
Google MapsThe river port of Manaus; the Negro level is read here, and gauge records are kept at the port.
Google Maps
The Museu da Amazônia, with a 42-meter tower over the Adolpho Ducke forest reserve.
Google MapsINPA's science woods, opened in 1995, with a manatee tank and a giant otter enclosure.
Google MapsThe CIGS zoo in west Manaus, with a collection of regional animals.
Google MapsThe city's largest stadium, opened in 2014 and shaped like a large straw basket.
Google MapsThe city beach on the Rio Negro, busiest on weekends.
Google MapsA sustainable development reserve just 25 minutes by river from Manaus.
Google Maps
Map data: © OpenStreetMap contributors
How can you visit the Amazon rainforest? Through Manaus, by air, by river or by one long road. This is how each route works, what entry rules apply and what a tour from Rio really means.
Editorial team, amazonrivertour.quest · Updated November 12, 2026 · 7 mins to read
Overview
- By airEduardo Gomes airport is 14 km from the center of Manaus.1
- By roadThe only road into the city is the BR-174, the Manaus-Boa Vista highway.2
- By riverA local boat from Belem to Manaus takes 5 days.3
- EntryBritish citizens can visit Brazil without a visa for up to 90 days of tourism.4
- TransferA private airport transfer starts from $20 on one listing.
Why the Amazon trip starts in Manaus, not in Rio
If you searched for a tour of the Amazon from Rio, the honest answer is that the trip does not start there. The tours we compared for the Amazon all begin in Manaus, and none of the listings in our set begins in Rio. A trip to the forest from Rio is two journeys: a flight to Manaus, then a tour from Manaus. Plan it that way from the start, with a flight day on each end.
Manaus is the gateway: it is the capital of the state of Amazonas, and it sits in the middle of the forest. The tourism ministry describes it as a city in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, with the Anavilhanas archipelago 100 km away and Janauari Ecological Park an hour away by boat.5,6 The river day sold on this site begins with a pickup at your Manaus hotel or at the airport.
That is the answer to the question "how can you visit the Amazon rainforest": you get to Manaus, and the rest is local. The distance from the airport to the city is short, a tour takes it from there, and you can be on the river on the day after you land. What takes planning is the journey to Manaus, which is why the rest of this page is about airports, roads, boats and papers.
All the ways in
Routes into Manaus compared
| Route | Time | What to know | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flight to Eduardo Gomes | Hours | Airport 14 km from the center | Airline fare |
| Airport transfer, budget | 30 minutes | Private, Portuguese-speaking driver | $20 |
| Airport transfer, English | By car | Private, met at the Arrivals Gate | $45 |
| Ferry to Santarem | 36 hours | Hammock add-on, bring cash | $150 |
| Local boat to Belem | 5 days | Hammocks or suites | $150 |
| Highway BR-174 | Long drive | The only road into Manaus | Own cost |
Prices are starting amounts, and flight fares depend on your airline and date.2
Flying into Manaus: the airport and the transfer
Eduardo Gomes International Airport is the way in for most visitors. It is 14 km from the center of Manaus, and it was inaugurated in 1976.1,7 In 2025 it handled 3.342 million boardings and landings, and it connects the state to 27 national and international destinations.8,9 Check the airline route maps for a direct flight from your own hub before you plan a connection.
Getting from the airport to town is cheap. A private airport-to-hotel transfer of 30 minutes, with a Portuguese-speaking driver, starts from $20, with 28 reviews averaging 5.0. Another private transfer, with a driver speaking Spanish and English who meets you at the Arrivals Gate, starts from $45, with 30 reviews averaging 4.6. Both ask for your flight details when you book.
If you book a tour that includes pickup, you may not need a transfer at all. Our river day includes pickup from a city hotel or the airport. The lodge stays list hotel pickup too, with the classic stay collecting guests in a window of 8 to 9 AM. Ask the operator whether airport pickup is possible on arrival day and what your flight time does to the plan.
By road or by river
Brazil's Ministry of Tourism says the only road into Manaus is the BR-174, known as the Manaus-Boa Vista highway.2 It also advises travelers who come from the central region of the country against using the Transamazonica, because of its poor condition.11 In practice that makes the road a route for locals and long-distance drivers, not for a visitor with a week to spend.
The river is the other way in. The same ministry notes that trips out of Manaus often go by boat and ferry, and that a trip from Belem to Manaus takes 5 days.3 A local boat from Manaus to Belem on our listings takes 5 days and starts from $150, with hammocks or suites aboard, and the listing says to carry extra money and food.
The ferry to Santarem takes 36 hours and begins at $150. You may bring a hammock or buy one at checkout, the listing says, and it adds that boats keep river time and that there is no signal for much of the trip. Both boats are real transport, not sightseeing trips, and the listings say so, which is worth remembering before you pick one for the scenery.
Your route
How should you reach Manaus
Say how much time you have and pick a route in.
If I have a week or less
Fly to Manaus
The airport is 14 km from the center of Manaus.1
If I land and want to rest
A booked transfer
Private transfers start from $20 and $45.
If I want to see the river for days
The Santarem ferry
36 hours from $150, with no signal for most of it.
If I have time and little money
The boat to Belem
5 days from $150, in a hammock or a suite.
If I want to drive from Brazil's center
Avoid the Transamazonica
The ministry advises against it for travelers from the central region.11
Pick your arrival
Transfer, ferry or long boat
River time
Ferry to Santarem
Transport, not a tour
- From$150
- Length36 hours
- HammockAdd-on
Slow travel
Boat to Belem
Local boat
- From$150
- Length5 days
- BedsHammock or suite
Entry rules and papers
Rules depend on your passport, so check the official source for your own country. British citizens can visit Brazil without a visa for up to 90 days of tourism, and their passport needs an expiry date at least 6 months after the day they arrive.4,46 Entry rules change, so read the official page for your passport again a few weeks before you fly.
For citizens of Australia, Canada and the United States, Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that visa requirements apply to visits for tourism and business from 10 April 2025, and that they can apply for an e-Visa through the portal brazil.vfsevisa.com.47 Apply before you book non-refundable flights, and use only the official portal named by the ministry.
The yellow fever rule is a health matter, not a border matter. CDC says Brazil does not require a yellow fever vaccine for country entry, but recommends it for travelers 9 months old and over going to Amazonas, among other states.48,49 CDC also advises travelers going to certain areas of Brazil to take prescription medicine against malaria.50 Ask a travel clinic which advice covers Manaus and your tour.
Your group
Starting cost of your first days
Pick a trip and your party size to see what your first days start at.
Look at 4 options
Starting cost of your first days
Pick a trip and your party size to see what your first days start at.
- Full-day river tourThe one sold here · each person, from $55
≈
View - Full-day excursion7.5 hours · each person, from $58
≈
View - Ferry to Santarem36 hours · each person, from $150
≈
View - Boat to Belem5 days · each person, from $150
≈
View
Starting prices as on the booking platform, converted at the ECB reference rate. You see the exact price at booking.
Arrival plan
From landing to the river
Landing day
Airport to hotel
The airport is 14 km from the center, and a private transfer takes 30 minutes on one listing.1
Free morning
Rest and confirm pickup
Hotel pickup is confirmed after you book the river day.
River day
Meeting of the Waters
The river day starts from $55 with pickup at a hotel or the airport.
City day
Old town on foot
City half day: 4 hours, from $56.
Lodge or home
Stay on or fly out
A short jungle trip of 2 days starts from $180.
How far each place is from Manaus
Distances set the length of the trip. The airport is 14 km from the center, the Anavilhanas archipelago is 100 km away, and the Amazonas agency puts Parintins, a ship stop on the river, 369 km from the capital.1,5,10 The chart shows them on one scale, from the airport on the edge of the city to a ship stop far down the river.
The first two fit a day tour; Parintins does not, since it is a ship stop rather than a day trip. The Anavilhanas trek takes 8 hours with a party of up to 10 and starts from $150. Anglers who want to go much farther up the Rio Negro should read the page on fishing trips, which prices a day of fishing on the river.
The map above puts the airport, the port, the theater and the confluence in one frame. Tours collect you from your hotel, so you rarely need to find the harbor yourself, but a few listings use meeting points: one meets at the Coreto dos Manaos inside the Adolpho Lisboa Municipal Market, and another has the guide wait at the same market.
Video
Three nights in the Amazon rainforest from Manaus and Rio
Somewhere On The MAP on YouTube · Until you tap play, no video is loaded.
For travelers from the central region of Brazil it is not advisable to use the Transamazonica highway, because of its poor condition.
Arrival checklist
Before you fly to Manaus
Papers3
- A passport with long enough validity
- An e-Visa if your passport needs one
- Your hotel name and flight number for transfers
Health3
- A travel clinic visit well ahead
- Yellow fever vaccine, as CDC recommends
- Insect repellent in your hand luggage
Money and plans3
- Cash for boats and village stops
- A free morning after you land
- Tours with free cancellation
How many days to plan around a river day
A day on the river needs one full day on the ground, and a flight day on each side, so plan a long weekend at the least. If you arrive on an overnight flight, plan the river day for the day after, not the day you land. Hotel pickup times for tours are confirmed after you book, so keep your first morning free.
If you add a lodge stay, add the stay's length. A short trip of 2 days starts from $180, the long-running lodge trip lasts 2 to 4 days and starts from $200, and the immersion lasts 2 to 5 days and leaves at 9:30 AM, returning at 4:30 PM, so a morning flight home is not possible on the last day, and the same goes for any trip that returns in the afternoon. Build that into your return flight.
For Amazon trips from Rio, a compact plan is a night in Manaus, a river day, a day in the city and one more night for a lodge sampler if you like it. The sister site covers the river dolphins in depth, while the pages here cover the river, the lodges, the city and the cruise port, so you can build the days around each other without repeating anything.
Safety and sense on the way in
Take the same care in Manaus that you would take in any large city: keep valuables out of sight, use official taxis or a transfer you booked, and agree on the fare or use a ride app. The airport transfer listings above let you fix the price in advance and give you a name and a time to look for, and they ask for your flight details so the driver can follow a delay.
Carry some cash as well as a card. The ferry listing tells passengers to carry cash for meals and drinks aboard, and the village stops on a river day sell handicrafts that you pay for yourself, so a few small notes save you an awkward moment, and a card still covers the hotel, the transfer and most shops in town.
Pack a plan B for weather, because INPA records show Manaus having its wet season from December to May.51 A tour that lists a cancellation window that runs to 24 hours ahead gives you room to move a day, which is worth having when the weather and a flight both have a say, and it costs you nothing to keep the booking until the last moment.
FAQ
Brief questions, brief answers.
Can you visit the Amazon rainforest from Rio in a day?
No, you go through Manaus.
A trip to the Amazon from Rio means a flight to Manaus and then a tour from Manaus, and the listings we compared start in Manaus.
How far is Manaus airport from the city?
About 14 km.
Eduardo Gomes International Airport is 14 km from the center of Manaus.1
How much is a taxi or transfer from Manaus airport?
From $20 on one listing.
A private airport-to-hotel transfer of 30 minutes starts from $20, and another starts from $45.
Do I need a visa to visit the Amazon in Brazil?
Do I need a yellow fever vaccine for Manaus?
Can you reach Manaus by road?
Only by the BR-174.
The only road into Manaus is the BR-174, the Manaus-Boa Vista highway.2
Sources
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (GOV.UK) · Entry requirements - Brazil travel advice ↩
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- Manaus Airport (VINCI Airports concessionaire) · Manaus Airport celebrates half a century of existence ↩
- Manaus Airport (VINCI Airports concessionaire) · Manaus Airport celebrates half a century of existence ↩
- Manaus Airport (VINCI Airports concessionaire) · Manaus Airport celebrates half a century of existence ↩
- Amazonas State Tourism Agency (Amazonastur) · Temporada de cruzeiros 2026 é aberta com a chegada do MS Insígnia ao Porto de Manaus ↩
- Ministry of Tourism of Brazil (Viaje pelo Brasil) · Manaus (AM) ↩
- NASA Earth Observatory · Drought on the Rio Negro
- NASA Earth Observatory · Solimoes-Negro River Confluence at Manaus, Amazonia
- PeruTravel (PROMPERU, Peru tourism board) · River Amazon
- Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) · Rio Negro alcança 25,02 m em Manaus, mas segue dentro da faixa de normalidade
- Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO/OTCA) · Welcome to the Amazon Basin Project
- Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) · Rio Negro alcança 25,02 m em Manaus, mas segue dentro da faixa de normalidade
- NASA Earth Observatory · Meeting of the Waters
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- INPA (National Institute for Amazonian Research, PPBio) · Anavilhanas Archipelago
- NASA Earth Observatory · Rio Negro, Amazonia, Brazil
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · Parque Encontro das Águas avança com terceira concretagem das asas de Niemeyer
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · Parque Encontro das Águas avança com terceira concretagem das asas de Niemeyer
- NASA Earth Observatory · Brazil's Negro River Reaches Record Low
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) · Rio Negro alcança 25,02 m em Manaus, mas segue dentro da faixa de normalidade
- Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) · Rio Negro alcança 25,02 m em Manaus, mas segue dentro da faixa de normalidade
- Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) · Rio Negro alcança 25,02 m em Manaus, mas segue dentro da faixa de normalidade
- NASA Earth Observatory · Rio Negro, Amazonia, Brazil
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- Manaus City Hall (Prefeitura Municipal de Manaus) · O que ver e fazer em Manaus
- UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (GOV.UK) · Entry requirements - Brazil travel advice ↩
- Brazilian federal government (gov.br) · Electronic Visitor Visa (e-Visa) - U.S., Canadian & Australian Citizens ↩
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) · Brazil - Traveler view ↩
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) · Brazil - Traveler view ↩
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) · Brazil - Traveler view ↩
- National Institute of Amazonian Research (INPA, Acta Amazonica) · Acta Amazonica 35(1) ↩